Throwing wheel and parts therefor



Aug. 3, 1965 R. w. MOORE ETAL THROWING WHEEL AND PARTS THEREFOR 3Sheets-Sheet l Filed May 18. 1962 m w O S- f OO BY M M ATTORNEYS Aug. 3,1965 R. w. MOORE ETAL THROWING WHEEL AND PARTS THEREFOR 3 Sheets-Sheet 2Filed May 18. 1962 INVENTORS Aug. 3, 1965 R. w. MOORE ETAL THROWINGWHEEL AND PARTS THEREFOR 3 Sheets-Sheet 5 Filed May 18. 1962 NVENTORSmore Jepklfowl' j:

United States Patent O ice Tl-IRWING WHEEL AND PARTS THEREFOR Ralph W.Moore, Hagerstown, Md., and Joseph E. Bowling, lr., Waynesboro, Pa.,assignors, by mesne assignments, to The Panghorn Corporation,Hagerstown, Md.,

a corporation of Delaware Filed May 18, 1962, Ser. No. 195,693 14Claims. (Cl. 51-9) The present invention relates to throwing wheels usedto project streams of particles against work piecesto` subject the workpieces to cleaning, abrading or peening action or the like. A typicalwheel of this kind is shown in U.S. Patent 2,732,666 granted January 31,1956.

Among the objects of the present invention is the provision of improvedthrowing wheels as well as component parts for such wheels.

The above objects and further objects of this invention will be morecompletely understood from the following description of several of itsexemplilications, and the accompanying drawings wherein:

FIG. 1 is a vertical section of a throwing wheel assembly exemplifyingthe present invention;

FIG. 2 is a front view of the wheel itself showing some of its throwingvanes in place, and one removed;

FIG. 3 and FIG. 4 are detail sectional views taken of the above wheelalong lines 3--3 and 4 4 respectively;

FIG. 5 is a view of one of the vanes in the above wheel, taken from itsouter end;

FIG. 6 is a view of the vane of FIGS, l-5 taken from its inner end;

FIG. 7 is a front view of the vane of FIGS. 1 6;

FIG. 8 i-s a view of the vane of FIGS. 1-7, looking from below;

FIG. 9 is an enlarged side View of a locking member in the apparatus ofFIG. l; and

FIG. l0 is a front view of the locking member of FIG. 9.

Vanes used for throwing wheels of the above type wear out under theabrading effects of the particles that are thrown. These particles movealong the vanes and are fairly abrasive, particularly when they arecontaminated with sand, alumina, or similar materials. Also the thrownparticles ricochet from the workpieces they are thrown against, as wellas from vane walls and the like, and as a result bounce around in alldirections, gradually wearing out other portions of the throwing wheeland surrounding structures. i

The replacement of the vanes has been an awkward operation because thethrown particles or pieces of debris work their way into the vanemounting structure and tend to seize together any closely fittingportions that may have to be moved in order to withdraw a vane. Moreoverprior art mounting structures do not readily allow for the applicationof forces great enough to move the seized components. j

According to the present invention a throwing wheel has radiallyextending vanes for projecting outwardly a stream of particles fed -tothe inner ends of the vanes as the wheel rotates, the wheel including arotor with a set of grooves in which the individual vanes are received,the groves being of the dovetail type andthe vanes having mountingflanges shaped to fit within the grooves so that each vane can bemounted on the wheel by sliding the vane inwardly from the outer end ofa groove, the floor of each groove having a recess which at its radiallyoutward end deiines a retainer stop, a removable retainer gib in eachgroove and having a head abutted against said stop and held herebyagainst radially outward movement, the gib having a longitudinallytapered wedging face facing the vane in the same slot, and each vaneflange hav- Patented Aug. 3, 1965 ing a correspondingly tapered wedgingbevel engaging said wedging face and locking the vane against radiallyoutward movement in the groove.

The vanes can also have a channel-shaped body along with the mountingstructure that holds the vane on the throwing wheel, the channel-shapedbody including a channel floor and channel side walls, and the cornersbetween the side walls and oor having a radius of not more than l; inch.

According to another aspect of the present invention the vane bodieshave a wall thickness no greater than inch except for one end of thechannel, the iloor of the channel at that end having a roundedenlargement extending about inch longitudinally of the vane and makingthe floor thickness about 9/16 inch.

In the drawings, FIG. l shows a throwing wheel assembly which includes ahousing 20 in which is rotatably journaled a spindle 22 that carries aradially extending wheel mounting flange 24. To this iiange is securedas by bolts 26 (FIG. 2), a runner head 2S which in turn carries a set ofvanes 36. A particle supply means which can be similar to that showninthe above-identified patent, delivers blastant particles to the centerof the wheel between the vanes in a space left open. The feed iscontrolled so that the particles are supplied tothe vanes at one limitedportion of the vane-rotation path, Vand the housing is open, asindicated at 36, to permit the particles to discharge from the vanestoward the work in the direction controlled by the particular locationof the vane supply. The particular details of the spindle mounting,housing arrangement, feed assembly, etc., can have differentconstructions. A more complete description of these details asillustrated in FIG. 1, are included in copending application Serial No.190,725 filed April 27, 1962, now abandoned.

As more clearly shown in FIG. 2, the runner head 28 has a plurality ofradially directed dovetail slots or grooves 3S in each of which anindividual vane is mounted. The bolts 26 securing the runner head to thespindle liange 24, are shown as mounted in the floors 32 of the grooves38. p

Near the outer end of each groove the ioor has a rst recess 34 (alsoFIG. 4) which is fairly shallow, and a second recess 4) which i-sdeeper. A dam 42 just beyond the second recess is at floor level, and iscut by a slot 44 into two portions. The side walls 46 of the groove areshown as of dovetail shape except that near the outer end these wallsare relieved as illustrated at 48 (FIGS. 3 and 4).

The vanes are held in the grooves by gibs 49 (see FIGS. 1, 9 and l0)that have a springy tail 51) secured as by brazing to a wedge block 51of generally triangular cross-section. The outer end of a dovetailflange 43 (FIG. 8) on the vane has a wedging bevel 52 (FIG. 7) thatengages a corresponding wedge face of the gib and jams the outer end ofthe gib against the dam 42 (FIGS. 3 and 4), under the iniiuence of thecentrifugal force developed by the rotation of the wheel. Mounting ofthe vanes is effected by sliding a vane into its groove, and thenslipping the gib under it. The vane is arranged to move into its grooveabout 1A; inch further than the illustrated wedged position, so that theblock on the outer end of the gib can be inserted after the vane. Afterthe gib is in place the vane is pulled out into wedged position, and thespringy tail of the gib squeezed between the floor of the groove and thebottom of the vanes mounting flange helps keep thevane wedged. Removalof a `vane is accomplished in the reverse manner. The vane is pushedinwardly to provide the above clearance for the gib. A straight toollike a screw driver blade can then be slipped through the slot 44-(FIGS. 2

vane is wedged in place.

and 3) to force the wedge block up over the darn d2. Both the vane andthe gib are then withdrawn.

The body of the vane is more clearly shown in FlGS. 5,46 and 7, and hasa channel-shaped face 56. A bulbous enlargement 58 (also FIG. 8) isprovided on the back of the body at the outer end of the channel. Alsothis end of the body is made to extend beyond the runner head 28 as wellas beyond the outer end of the dovetail base 43. The inner end of thechannel can be beveled on its back surface, as shown at 60.

FIG. 8 shows the bottom of the dovetail base 43 and shows a group ofthree positioning lands or webs '71, 72 and 73. Between` them the basebottom is relieved and in the illustrated embodiment has two recesses 81and 82. The lands are preferably spaced a small amount, about 1/16 4tol@ inch, from the ioor of groove when the This spacing is generally too"large to permit seizing by particles that may work their way in. Theremoval of all lands except at the ends of the dovetail flange alsoreduces the possibility of seizure.

A feature of the present invention is that the vanes can be readilyremoved and replaced without the need for hammering or otherwiseapplying large stresses. The spacings are such that no seizure takesplace and the vanes are easily pushed in and pulled out by hand withouttools, once the wedge block is lifted out of its stop position. Wherethe gib tail is suiciently non-yielding it will .also hold its block infront of land 71 so that this land pushes the gib out before it when thevane is withdrawn. VLand 72 or 73 can help by also pushing the gib outbefore it. For this purpose the outer end of the gib tail is bent so asto be in the path of these lands which, as pointed out above, areadvisedly spaced a little from the groove floor. The tail also urges thevane flange upwardly against the sides 46 of the groove to help hold thevane in position when the wheel is not rotating. When it is rotatingcentrifugal forces lock the vanes in place and hold them accurately inposition.

The above vanes are readily made by casting, as by using an ordinarysand casting' mold with baked sand inserts if desired. The vanes caneither be cast one at a time, or a plurality can be cast together.

A very effective form of gib is illustrated in greater detail in FIGS. 9and 10. It is made of a sheet of spring metal corrugated so as tozig-zag to and fro between two parallel planes 91, 92, preferably about1% inch apart. The head of the gib has a block 51 secured to one end ofthe metal sheet and arranged so that it provides a tapered wedging face94 that only extends out to the plane 91.

On the opposite face of the gib it provides a tapered face 95 thatextends beyond plane 92 and helps outer edge 96 of the head butt againstthe face of dam 42, which acts as a positioning stop.

The gib preferably extends over substantially the en- -tire width of thegroove floor, so that the access passageway 44 removes only a smallportion of the positioning stop. The Wall relieving 48 near the stopenables the wide gib head to be readily slipped over the darn intoposition when mounting the vane, and to be readily pried out over thedarn when the vane is to be demounted. Also the tapered character offace 9S enables it to be more readily engaged by a prying tool, liftedup and pulled over the dam.

The vane weight is also reduced by making its body with a wall thicknessof about 1% inch except for the discharge end of the channel. At thatend the bulbous enlargement 58 provides a rounded wear surface and athicker end 98 that better withstands erosion by the particles that arethrown out and ricochet back from the work surfaces being treated. Theenlargement need not extend'more than `3/s inch longitudinally of thevane,

,masse nor make the channel oor more than about 5%@ inch v mountingflange 43 of the vanes is substantially uniform in congurationthroughout its length. The use of abrupt apertures or the like, of thetype used in the prior art to hold locking pins, as in theabove-mentioned Patent 2,732,666, seriously weakens the mounting flangeand generally `restricts the magnitude of the centrifugal forces it cansafely withstand. The throwing wheels of the present invention do nothave stress concentrations at abrupt apertures, and can be safelyoperated at speeds `as high as about 3600 revolutions per minute, wherethe prior ait maximum speeds are about 2800 revolutions per ininute orlower. Higher speeds enable more particle projection from smaller wheelsand also simplify wheel rotashifting arrangements. Because of thegreater massiveness of the runner head 28, it will effectively withstandsuch higher stresses notwithstanding the presence of the recesses 34, d@and 44. The corners of these recesses can be more or less rounded andthey can have radii as small as 1/16 inch orV as large as l@ inchwithout detracting from the above higher operating speed safety.

The above constructions are very effectively used with vanes havingchannel widths as much as 6 inches and as little as two inches or less.The wall thicknesses of the vane bodies can be varied somewhat, e.g.between 5/16 and 7/16 yinch and still take advantage of the low vaneweight. The bevel 85 that locks the mounting llange can be at an angleof from about 20 to 70 degrees with respect to the channel wall,although a 45 degree bevel is particularly desirable. Also the gib canhave an overall tail thickness of somewhat more and somewhat less thanthe 3A; inch value given above, with or without corresponding adjustmentof the Vspace between the ange bottom and the floor of the groove. Thisspace is preferably such that the gib tail is compressed at least 1&2inch. The projection of face 95 beyond plane 92 need only be about 1/16inch.

The gib head can also be provided by bolting or riveting a block to thetsheet metal tail, or even by casting the block about one end of thetail. By using the tail as the wedging surface 94, advantage is taken ofthe wear-resistant character of the springy metal, such as high carbonsteel or other spring steel, from which the tail is made. However, thetail can be used to make face 95 instead, if desired. Although twocorrugations are shown in the illustrated gib, more or fewercorrugations can be used.

The features of the present invention can also be used with vanes thatare mounted between two parallel rotors or runner heads. In suchmountings there is no need for the ruggedness built into the cantilevermounting illustrated in the gures, and the vanes can then be made withWalls even thinner than indicated above. However, the less roundedcorners, the bulbous enlargements and the freedom from pin connections,contribute advantages in particle impingement pattern, vane life andincreased operating speed, respectively, regardless of the type ofmounting.

Obviously many modiiications and variations of the present invention arepossible in the light of the above teachings. It is, therefore, to beunderstood that within Athe scope of the appended claims the inventionmay be practiced otherwise than as specifically described.

What is claimed:

1. A vane for a particle throwing wheel that rotates and projectsparticles fed to the vane, said vane having a channel-shaped body withmounting structure to hold the vane on the throwing wheel, the mountingstructure including a flange along one side edge of the body, the flangebeing thicker than the body and having a foot portion that is beveledlongitudinally of the flange to provide a wedging surface accessiblefrom one end of the Harige.

2. A particle throwing wheel assembly having radially extending vanesfor projecting outwardly a stream of Particles fed to the inner ends ofthe vanes as the wheel rotates, the wheel including a rotor with a setof grooves in which the individual vanes are received, the grooves beingof the dovetail type and the vanes having mounting anges shaped to twithin the grooves so that each vane can be mounted on the wheel bysliding the vane inwardly from the outer end of a groove, the oor ofeach groove having a recess `which at its radially outward end denes aretainer stop, a removable retainer gib in each groove and having awedge block secured to that end of the gib lying adjacent the outerperiphery of the wheel which abuts said stop and is held thereby againstradially outward movement, the gib having a longitudinally taperedwedging face facing the vane in the same slot, and each vane flangehaving a correspondingly tapered wedging bevel engaging said wedgingface and locking the vane against radially outward movement in thegroove.

3. The combination of claim 2 in which the gib is a springy body.

4. The combination of claim 2 in which the recess eX- tends acrosssubstantially the entire width of each groove, the gib Wedge block issubstantially as wide as the recess and the recess extends radiallyinwardly about as far as the gib block does.

5. The combination of claim 2 in which that portion of the gib securedto the wedge block is longitudinally tapered on the face opposite theWedging face, the taper in the two faces extending in oppositedirections.

6. The combination of claim 2 in which a narrow passageway runs throughthe retainer stop and provides direct access to the gib wedge block.

7. A particle throwing Wheel rotor having radially eX- tending groovesof the dovetail type to receivethrowing vanes, each groove having aHoor, a recess near its outer end to provide at the radially outward endof the recess a retainer stop for the vanes, and an access passagewaythrough a narrow portion of each stop.

8. The combination of claim 7 in which the recess ex-i tendssubstantially completely across each groove and is deeper immediatelyadjacent the stop than it is at its opposite end, the side walls of thegroove are tapered except at the groove end adjacent the stop, and atthat end the side walls are relieved to permit passage of a lockingdevice over the stop and into the recess.

9. A retainer gib for use in particle throwing wheels having anelongated, relatively wide springy body and a Wedge block secured to oneend of the body, that portion of the gib secured to the wedge blockpresenting on both faces a longitudinally tapered surface.

10. The combination of `claim 9 in which the body is a generallycorrugated metal sheet.

11. A vane for a throwing wheel that rotates and projects particles fedto the vane, said vane having a channelshaped body with mountingstructure to hold the vane on the throwing wheel, the body having a wallthickness no greater than 5%; inch except for one end of the channel,the floor of the channel at that end having a rounded enlargementextending about 3A; inch longitudinally of the vane and making the floorthickness about W16 inch.

12. The combination of claim 11 in which the vane is a one-piece ferrousmetal casting. j

13. The combination of claim 12in which the mounting structure is onlyalong one side edge of the vane body.

14. The combination of claim 12 in which the channelshaped body has achannel oor and channel side walls, and the corners between the oor andside walls have a radius of not more than 1A; inch.

References Cited by the Examiner UNITED STATES PATENTS 2,204,633 6/40Turnbull 51-9 2,376,639 5/45 Unger 51-9 2,869,289 l/59 Gossard 5l-9 YLESTER M. SWINGLE, Primary Examiner.

JOHN C. CHRISTIE, I. SPENCER OVERHOLSER,

Examiners.

Disclaimer 3,197,920.-?alpk W. Moore, Hagerstown, Md., and Josep/L E.Bowling, Jr. Waynesboro, Pa. THROVVING VHEEL AND PARTS THERE- FOR.Patent dated Aug. 3, 1965. Disclaimer led Mar. 17, 1972, by theassignee, The Oarbomndum Company. Hercby enters this disclaimer toclaims 11, 12 und 14 0f said patent,

[Ofm'al Gazette June I3, 1972.]

2. A PARTICLE THROWING WHEEL ASSEMBLY HAVING RADIALLY EXTENDING VANESFOR PROJECTING OUTWARDLY A STREAM OF PARTICLES FED TO THE INNER ENDS OFTHE VANES AS THE WHEEL ROTATES, THE WHEEL INCLUDING A ROTOR WITH A SETOF GROOVES IN WHICH THE INDIVIDUAL VANES ARE RECEIVED, THE GROOVES BEINGOF THE DOVETAIL TYPE AND THE VANES HAVING MOUNTING FLANGES SHAPED TO FITWITHIN THE GROOVES SO THAT EACH GROOVE CAN BE MOUNTED ON THE WHEEL BYSLIDING THE VANE INWARDLY FROM THE OUTER END OF A GROOVE, THE FLOOR OFEACH GROOVE HAVING A RECESS WHICH AT ITS RADIALLY OUTWARD END DEFINES ARETAINER STO, A REMOVABLE RETAINER GIB IN EACH GROOVE AND HAVING A WEDGEBLOCK SECURED TO THAT END OF THE GIB LYING ADJACENT THE OUTER PERIPHERYOF THE WHEEL WHICH ABUTS SAID STOP AND IS HELD THEREBY AGAINST RADIALLYOUTWARD MOVEMENT, THE GIB HAVING A LONGITUDINALLY TAPERED WEDGING FACEFACING THE VANE IN THE SAME SLOT, AND EACH VANE FLANGE HAVING ACORRESPONDING TAPERED WEDING BEVEL ENGAGING SAID WEDGING FACE ANDLOCKING THE VANE AGAINST RADIALLY OUTWARD MOVEMENT IN THE GROVE.